Climate Types in the Philippines, Annual Rainfall and Typhoon Frequency by Region

There
are four climate types in the Philippines according to the Modified
Corona's Classification of Climate. These
are the Types I, II, III, and IV.

This system of climate classification was devised by Fr. J. Corona in 1920 (Lantican 2001) and is based on average monthly rainfall. Accordingly, a dry month is one with less than 50 mm of rainfall but also considers dry a month having more than 100 mm of rainfall that comes after three or more very dry months.

Country-wide, the Philippines has a tropical climate with a relatively high temperature and humidity having abundant rainfall. This climate is largely similar to those of countries in Central America (kidlat.pagasa.dost.gov.ph, accessed January 28, 2011).

Four climate types in the Philippines according to the Modified Corona Classification of Climate

These four climate types are described below. The regions having the specific climate are obtained from Lantican (2001), citing Kintanar (1984).

Type I:Two pronounced seasons, dry from November to April, and wet during the rest of the year. Maximum rain period is from June to September.

Regions with Type I climate: Ilocos Region, western part of Mountain Province, western part of Nueva Ecija, Central Luzon, Metro Manila, Cavite, Laguna, Batangas, Tarlac, Pampanga, Bulacan, Bataan, Zambales, Occidental Mindoro, southern parts of Antique and Iloilo, northwestern part of Palawan, and the southern parts of Negros Oriental and Negros Occidental).

Type II: No dry season with a very pronounced maximum rain period from December to February. There is not a single dry month. Minimum monthly rainfall occurs during the period from March to May.

Type III: No very pronounced maximum rain period, with a short dry season lasting only from one to three months, either during the period from December to February or from March to May. This climate type resembles type I since it has a short dry season.